This is When Successful People Wake Up

Success leaves clues, and if you sow the same seeds, you’ll reap the same rewards.
– Brad Thor

If you want to emulate highly successful people and create your own successful life, you might want to consider the one thing they have in common and adapt it to your life.

As the title suggests, the one thing successful people have in common is that they’re early risers.

Here’s a list of when successful people wake up.

Out of all those successful people, one person in particular made my eyes pop out:

Tim Cook, the chief executive officer of Apple Inc.

Can you guess what time he wakes up?

I can only say “a crazy hour.”

Below is a list of well-known people’s wake-up times.

If you’re like me, be ready to say, “That’s crazy!”

At the same time, you’ll likely feel motivated to think about how you spend your time and turn yourself into a morning person to become successful.

3:45 am

When I read about Tim Cook, who starts his mornings at 3:45 am, I couldn’t help uttering:

Waaaht…?

I’m embarrassed to say that as a once hardcore night owl, that’s when I used to go to bed!

Without great self-discipline, we’re prone to daily temptation, stay late, and waste our time.

Knowing the priority is one thing. Practising it daily is, however, incredibly difficult.

All the more reason to have huge respect for people like him who make me think some people just don’t do things in half measures.

4:00 am

Of course, there are people who have to wake up as early as 4 a.m. Their job demands it.

The thing is, these successful people wake up at the crack of dawn not because they have to but because they want to.

It’s said that 4 a.m. is the most productive hour of the day with no distractions, giving you the sense of having more control over your life.

Some others have a different reason for waking up so early.

Ellevest CEO and Co-Founder Sallie Krawcheck, for example, wakes up at 4 a.m. because it’s the best time for her creative thinking.

But it was former Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi who caught my interest.

Not only is she another early riser, but her valuable lessons stuck in my mind.

She shared her wisdom in her “goodbye” letter to employees when she stepped down as the CEO of PepsiCo.

• Set goals.
• Listen openly to feedback.
• Pursue lifelong education.
• Think hard about time.

I don’t know about you, but every single piece of advice resonates with me.

Maybe because I’m writing about the time successful people wake up, the last one sounds the loudest right now.

How about you?

5:00 am

Jack Dorsey, Twitter co-founder, who wakes up at 5 a.m., has a rather extreme morning routine, sitting in a sauna for 15 minutes and jumping into a 2 °C ice bath.

Repeat the routine three times!

His logic is impressive and admirable.

I feel like if I can will myself to do that thing that seems so small but hurts so much, I can do nearly anything.

Jack Dorsey, Twitter co-founder

Although I can’t say “jumping into a 2°C ice bath” seems a small thing to me, here’s another mega-businessman.

Virgin Group founder Richard Branson wakes up at 5 a.m. because, according to him, he can work through his emails before most of the world logs on.

Amount of Sleep

Some other successful people are more focused on getting the right amount of sleep than on how early they wake up.

Knowing the negative effect of lack of sleep too well, I too advocate the right amount of sleep.

They’re still morning people, though.

For example, Warren Buffet wakes up at 6:45 a.m. He loves his sleep, which usually lasts eight hours.

The richest man Amazon founder Jeff Bezos also belongs to the 8-hour sleep camp. He says he tries to make it his priority.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates likes his 7 hours of sleep because it helps him “stay sharp, creative, and upbeat.”

If these successful men put the priority on the amount of sleep, who are we to argue otherwise?

Becoming an Early Riser

If you want to wake up early and adapt to the lifestyle of these successful people, a 30-day challenge is an excellent way to start.

One of my challenges was waking up at 5 a.m.

Prior to taking on the challenge, I had been experiencing lots of benefits from waking up early as a newly converted morning person.

Waking up at 5 am was a whole different kettle of fish, though, and it lasted for 30 days.

The challenge allowed me to tick off an “at least I tried it once” item that is crucial for my personal development.

If you want to become an early riser, here’s how you do it:

Decide a certain wake-up time and give it a go for 30 days.

Or, slowly ease into it by waking up 20 or 30 minutes early each day until you hit your ideal time.

If you want to use that extra time and exercise in the morning, put on your trainers and walk out the door immediately after waking up.

Or team up with someone to be accountable for each other. When you involve another person, your sense of obligation increases.

Therefore, you’re likely to be motivated to continue.

You can incorporate each of the above into a 30-day challenge to further help you maintain consistency.

Final Thoughts

Since I became a morning person, I’ve been more proactive in all areas of my life.

That’s definitely one big plus.

Besides, getting up early sets me up with good moods.

As I feel more in control of my time, I’m less likely to procrastinate on important things.

There are many other benefits to waking up early.

Given the prominent people above, it’s obvious that being an early riser is a big factor in achieving success in life.

If you want to emulate their success, getting up one or two hours earlier than your usual time is a worthwhile endeavour to try and see how much difference it makes to your day and, therefore, your life.

You Might Also Enjoy…

• 7 Healthy Daily Habits Before 7 AM to Jumpstart Your Day
• The Benefits of Waking Up Early and How to Become a Morning Person
• 8 Reasons Why You’re Not Successful Yet